Harbor Homes and Dickerson Court demolition nears end

NEWPORT NEWS — Dust and rubble are all that remain of the Harbor Homes and Dickerson Court subsidized public housing complexes that once existed just off lower Jefferson Avenue near 20th Street.

Now, as contractors clear debris from the 35 acres, the city must decide what to do with the property. Karen Wilds, Newport News Redevelopment and Housing Authority executive director, said it will not be used housing since it sits "in the shadow of the coal terminals."

Instead, city officials are considering new uses that will bring jobs to the community.

"We keep hearing from people, 'we want jobs,'" said Florence Kingston, city Economic Development Authority executive director. "We are looking at it for things that will create jobs and business activity in the community."

Wilds agreed. "My goal is that whatever we do there provides employment."

Kingston said the site's proximity to Newport News Shipbuilding, the port and the city's seafood industry offers possibilities for complementary businesses.

Bourey said he thinks the parcel might work well for a mix of retail and industrial uses.

Kingston and Bourey said the city has no plans to move quickly on marketing and developing the parcel. Both said city officials want to hear from community residents and business owners, and want ideas for the site to be incorporated into the city's comprehensive plan.

"I think we need to use the comprehensive plan update process to hear from the community," Kingston said. "We need to get input from the citizens."

By the time the city is ready to move forward with developing the parcel, the Brooks Crossing development, on which work is slated to begin in the first quarter of 2014, should be well underway, Bourey added.

Demolition began in 2010 with Dickerson Court, an apartment complex built in 1950 with 340 units. In 2011, the city began razing Harbor Homes, which began as temporary housing for shipyard workers in 1941, its buildings holding 252 units. The city spent about $1.6 million demolishing the buildings.

All of the residents were moved over a three-year period, Wilds said. About 90 percent moved to other public housing in the city. Roughly 50 families qualified for and received housing vouchers. The other families moved elsewhere, Wilds said.